Question: oil

[gofastlarry]

:confused what is the best engine oil to use? ive always used whats whats recomended in the owners manual. i hear lucas oil stabalizer is good to use with your oil. just wondering.:confused

 

[Tuna]

I guess the 'best oil' depends on what you're using your car for - racing, daily driver, max fuel ecomony, etc.

I've been using Mobil 1 for years and nothing else, I'm happy with it.

I bought a '92 Vette in Oct '91 and put 103K miles on it by 2003, using nothing but Mobil 1 10w30. I had the engine torn down to add horsepower and found no signs of wear anywhere and it was clean as could be inside. I also change the oil every 12-15 thousand miles but change the oil filter every 3500, to 4000 miles. I still do that with my C6's.

 

[jrose7004]

I've just always stuck with Mobil 1 as it meets or exceeds the manufacturers requirement.

 

[vett boy]

I don't race so I stick with Mobil 1 and a good quality filter .For me it's a no brainier

 

[Bluemill]

Synthetic

I 've had a quick lube franchisee tell me many times that they are all good, if the API grade is the right one, and that it's more a perception of marketing and packaging. He does say that the full synthetic is for real, and a lot better than the best conventional oil.

In that vien, I go for the best price on a full synthetic. Right now, that's Shell full synthetic for about $3.33 a quart, although I haven't bought any in a month or two.

I did do a test once, same car, same climate conditions, Mobil 1 vs. Castrol synth. I got much better gas mileage with the Castrol, like 8%.

Enjoy!

Bluemill

 

[Hib Halverson]

Lucas oil stabilizer is pure "snake oil". It's nothing more than a way to get you to give money to Lucas Oil for a worthless product.

Ok....it's "worthless" as long as you use a good engine oil.

Don't listen to "quick lube" franchises either. Most of them know how to sell oil and service but don't actually know much about oil and service.

As for the question that led this thread...

what is the best engine oil to use?

The "best" oil to use in a C5 engine regardless of price is Red Line 10W30.

The best to use if price is an important limitation is Mobil 1 10W30

Both of these are great engine oil products. There is absolutely no need to use any additive, Lucas or otherwise, with them.

 

[zagger]

Mobil 1 works for me

I also change the oil every 12-15 thousand miles but change the oil filter every 3500, to 4000 miles.

How the heck can you change the filter without drooping oil ?

 

[vett boy]

I think you'll find the filter intake is higher than the oil pan level .It is true that the weakest link of synthetic oil change is usually the filter.As I always change my oil at 50-70% I don't worry to much.Early oil changes are not really necessary but it gives me a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

 

[Tuna]

Mobil 1 works for me



How the heck can you change the filter without drooping oil ?

You always drop some oil when you change the filter. I just top of the oil (1/2 - 3/4 quart) with fresh Mobil 1 10w30 and press on. I always pre-fill the new filter with oil before I screw it on then top off the oil in the pan after checking for leaks and allowing for the appropriate wait time required for the C5/6.

BTW, most service places will not do this for you, to them it's filter and oil or nothing.

 

[zagger]

Never to old to learn a new trick. Guess I'm a product of old school of thinking and never even thought of changing the filter without changing oil.

 

[ScottNoxid]

I think you'll find the filter intake is higher than the oil pan level .It is true that the weakest link of synthetic oil change is usually the filter.As I always change my oil at 50-70% I don't worry to much.Early oil changes are not really necessary but it gives me a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

I can go along with the warm, but how do you get fuzzy?

 

[vett boy]

I can go along with the warm, but how do you get fuzzy?

Junkies homemade jet fuel .Gives ya that warm feelin' and leaves ya fuzzy .If your not lucky to have some try a good Kentucky Bourbon.

The point is that premature oil changes and specialty synthetic oils probably won't do much of anything for the average owner except waste a little money .But it makes the owner feel good and I like to feel good.

 

[killain]

There are as many opinions on "The best oil" for my car as there are people. I do what General Motors recommends in the owners manual, 5w/30 Mobil 1. I'm sure that other types of oil are just great, but since I only change the oil once a year, I go for the oil and filter from the Chevy dealership, I do however, buy my own oil at Walmart, 7 quarts cost about 29.50 which I think is a good price. The dealership provides the filter and the whole oil change cost about $45.00 which to me is cheap. I own a 50K car, if I want a cheaper way to go, I'll buy a Hyundia !

 

[Hib Halverson]

Keep in mind that the famed GM recomendation of 5W30, which goes back to the late 1970s, exists primarily to increase fuel economy and GM has used the very slight increase that might come from using a 5W vs. a 10W oil to enhance its CAFE and to claim to environmentalists that it was a "good citizen" because it was doing things to improve fuel mileage and lessen dependance on foreign oil.

In a practical sense, the difference in fuel economy between a 5W30 and a 10W30, with a Corvette is so small to be irrlevant.

Most Corvette engines, especially those used in severe duty or in warm summer climates, are going to have best durability if a 10W30 engine oil is used. Additionally, in the case of M1, most other synthesized-hydrocarbon base synthetics and all petroleum based 5W30s; if you move to a 10W30, you get a better oil with less viscosity index improvers (which have no lubricity) and more engine oil.

The only Corvettes that really need a 5W30 are those operated during winter in cold climates where a lot of below freezing temperatures are present.

 

[ScottNoxid]

Junkies homemade jet fuel .Gives ya that warm feelin' and leaves ya fuzzy .If your not lucky to have some try a good Kentucky Bourbon.

The point is that premature oil changes and specialty synthetic oils probably won't do much of anything for the average owner except waste a little money .But it makes the owner feel good and I like to feel good.

Kind of like when you have a full tank of gas! SC:WTT

 

[Tuna]

Junkies homemade jet fuel .Gives ya that warm feelin' and leaves ya fuzzy .If your not lucky to have some try a good Kentucky Bourbon.

The point is that premature oil changes and specialty synthetic oils probably won't do much of anything for the average owner except waste a little money .But it makes the owner feel good and I like to feel good.

The extra money wasted also means 'perfectly good' oil going into a recycling program or a land fill for toxic waste. I'm not into wasting the extra money when my own experience has shown that to be true and I'd rather have the recyclers and toxic waste handlers wait a while longer before they get my used oil.

 

[killain]

I go about 40 miles to a really good Chevy dealership, and they have a expert GM master tech who works on my Corvette. I asked him about additives to the motor oil, and he said I could set my money on fire as that's what your doing by putting anything other than oil in the engine. I asked about using 10w/30 Mobil 1. He told me that here in Pennslyvania, with the temps down around 10 degrees often through the winter, that using a heavier oil other than 5w/30 is really not good for the engine. And that the engine needs that 5w during the first 45 to 120 seconds of idling, after that time, it's protected by the 10w oil and on up the viscosity table as the engine heats up.

He said the engine as it warms up is not affected by being a 5w over a 10w as the engine is idling around two or three minutes it is warm enough to be protected by a 5w/30 and in the summer, when the temps are over a 100 degrees, that the 30 weight is excellant protection for the engine, anything heavier is just sludge rolling around it the oil pan. This technician works on corvettes at the dealership and only Corvettes. Great guy who will tell you the truth even if it's not making money for the company.

I asked about changing the transmission oil, but he said the way I drive and the little use I put on the car, that changing the trans oil was a waste. but he also said that way too many people will drive the car to 80.000 miles and never change the coolant, which he said was the single most important thing you can do to a car, changing the 'Dexcool' every two years at a minimum. and at the same time changing the clutch fluid as it does break down very quickly over the course of a few years.

 

[edram454]

I use Amsoil 0W30 oil. expensive but worth it. the first number (0) is the weight when the oil is cold. the (30) is the viscosity when the oil get hot. 30 weight is the protection that gm recommends. the newer engines have higher tolerances which is why gm does not recommend thicker oils. Also, 0W30 oil allows rotating parts to operate much smoother resulting in more power. I have seen gains from 8-12 horsepower just by changing oils. I have noticed a better idle and quicker response from my car. it is not a daily driver just a weekend car. it runs much smoother and revs up much faster. fyi. Amsoil is one of the finest oils money can buy. not easy to find but worth the money. edram454.

 

[gofastlarry]

i have herd great things about amsoil. how much is it costing ya

 

[edram454]

bout 10 to 11 bucks a quart. since I dont change the oil but once a year it's not too bad.